Archive for the ‘Litter-clearing’ Category

A clean-up of the Loop took place over the weekend of 28th and 29th April. Thanks to organiser Charles for this update!

Volunteers principally from the Sustrans Volunteers and the Friends of the Fallowfield Loop took part in the event and over the two days filled bags and bags with litter and collected piles of un-baggable waste. These were left at the side of the track for collection by Sustrans staff with their truck. Fortunately the weather was dry and not too windy although it was unseasonably cold, particularly on the Sunday.

The statistics were:

Number of volunteers participating Saturday = 20

Number of volunteers participating Sunday = 17

Number of volunteers participating Monday = 1

Number of volunteers participating more than once = 8

TOTAL Volunteer-days = 38

TOTAL Volunteers participating = 29

Number of black bags filled on Saturday (Levenshulme to Gorton Reservoir) = 55

Number of black bags filled on Sunday (Levenshulme to Withington Road) = 51

Number of bags filled on Monday (Gorton Reservoir to Fairfield) = 6

TOTAL Bags of litter collected = 126

(N.B. The bags used were large (100-litre) refuse bags equivalent to approx 1.3 bags as used by the council for litter collection.)

Unfortunately not many pictures were taken to record the event as we had our work cut out completing the route. The real record fortunately is on the Loop for everyone to see – it’s looking a real picture!

Many thanks are due again to Sustrans and the Thursday volunteers who have continued, on the first and third Thursday of every month, to work hard to maintain the Loop and its habitats. Tasks in recent months have included:

woodland thinning at Abbey Hey.

clearing an area of brambles near Nelstrop Road North, to create a wildflower area.

multiple activities at the Levenshulme quadrants (digging out rubble, removing the remaining stumps of small trees, pruning the large hawthorn and cutting back the surrounding undergrowth – all with a view to having a larger open grassy area that can be kept mown short, and so provide a more useful area for community activities).

For the first outing of 2018, the group was out this past Thursday clearing the already-cut brash that was lying around the Athol Road entrance and consolidating it into habitat piles. As well as making the entrance more attractive, this will give the bulbs planted a year ago a better chance to see the light.

For more information about these task days, which run from 10 a.m. to 1.30 p.m., please contact us, then Sustrans or those co-ordinating the Thursday events will get back in touch!

Please make a note of this community clean-up taking place from Saturday 21st to Monday 23rd October 2017 – and come along to help if you can! Although it is beyond the end of the Fallowfield Loop, the Friends will be joining several other relevant groups to help with this. It is to improve the route known as The Yellow Brick Road or The Dry Canal, which is a 1.5-mile greenway linking the Fallowfield Loop and the Ashton Canal. Any help will be greatly appreciated! For more information and to register your interest, please see here.

Over the past several months volunteers from the Friends and Sustrans have continued their excellent efforts to maintain and improve the Loop. Recent activities have included a spring litter-pick, managing the saplings along the Loop edges, wildflower sowing and improving the grassed area at the Levenshulme quadrants!

New volunteers are always welcome so if anyone would like to come along and help from time to time (it doesn’t have to be every Thursday) then please get in touch!

The Friends of the Fallowfield Loop will be holding a rolling clean-up on the Loop on Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th November 2013. All are welcome to come along and help out! Please see our Events page for further details.

On the first May bank holiday weekend (Saturday 4th to Monday 6th), the Friends attempted the most ambitious clean-up we have ever organised, working along the whole length of the Loop from Debdale to Chorlton-cum-Hardy, and taking advantage of the late spring to reach well into the undergrowth on the side banks. Although the agreed timetable slipped due to the weight of rubbish towards the eastern end, we managed to cover almost all the sections eventually. 27 helpers took part over the three days, as well as the Whalley Range Scouts, and we removed up to ten car-loads of rubbish, separating out cans and bottles for recycling as we went. This was a worthwhile but sometimes unpleasant task, and we received many expressions of appreciation from passers-by. A suggestion from one of them was that we should have our own tailor-made ‘Who’s Working?’ signs to give us greater recognition, and we are looking into this. Again our thanks to all who took part, and especially to Dick Venes for devising and organising the weekend. We hope that it will help Rangers to continue to keep their sections of the Loop cleared, at least on the immediate verges.

All welcome to this from 10.30 a.m. onwards, either to do a spot of work or just to view the site and chat! The location is just west of the entrance to the Loop which is on Sherwood Street, Fallowfield. Here is a map.

The main job is to do a preliminary clearance of the undergrowth on the proposed orchard site – brambles, saplings and other growth – and possibly to mark out where the planting holes might go. There is also some rubbish collection from the Sherwood Street entrance to do. Please bring tools relevant to these tasks if you can. Suggested tools are: saw, cutters, shears, spade, rake. Please also wear suitable shoes/boots and gloves. The orchard site is under the Wellington Road bridge and across the bridge over the stream immediately to the right.